boxer

Has anyone used titebond III to glue up cocobolo? I know the powers that be suggest using epoxy on oily woods, but I've read that you can't clamp joints with epoxy the same as you would with glue. With the price of cocobolo being what it is, I can't afford to mess up too many times.
Thanks,
Kevin

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Mike

Any oily wood can be cleaned with acetone to remove the excess oil before glue is applied. Why not try on a couple of small scraps with the Titebond III as a test? Another thought is gorilla glue bonds anything, but I would still clean the wood with acetone first. If you get any run out from the gorilla glue let it harden completely. The foamy dried glue comes off in a snap. Again, you should have enough small scraps from your project to test them both. I would like to hear your results.

boxer

I appreciate the reply. I was afraid this was going to get lost in the shuffle. I am going to get the gorilla glue this weekend and try it. I'll be sure to let you know.
Thanks again,
Kevin

reible

I looked in my wood book to see what you are working with....... Interesting stuff and they label it "very difficult to glue".

Having said that the previous advice seems good as that works with things like teak.

I then went to the titebond site:
www.titebond.com

I found this in the FAQ:
Get better results gluing woods that are oily or high in tannic acid.
When working with woods that are high in tannic acid or are considered oily, wiping the joints with acetone before gluing them up ensures a good bond. Acetone clears the contaminants from the wood's pores on the bonding surface and dries quickly without leaving any residue. A good bonding surface can also be achieved by sanding or planing the wood just before gluing the joints.

BTW:
call 1-800-347-4583 they might be able to help, at least what they have in their product line that might work.

Ed

hcbph

Haven't used Titebond 3, but have glued it with Titebond 2 before. Treat it like Teak, wiped it down with lacquer thinner first then glued and clamped it and no problems. I did use biscuits in it and it came out fine.

reible

What kind of things are you making out of cocobolo? I see things like knife handles, tool handles, inlays etc, but most of those don't sound like what your doing.

About all I know about it is that it's expensive.....

Ed

boxer

Ed,
I haven't used any of it yet. My hardwood store finally got some in, and I just had to get some. I've had it almost a year now, but for the price, I'm still working up the nerve to use it. I use exotics to make jewelry boxes using laminated strips for the lids.
Kevin